This is a great piece from today's Dartmouth, about two Dartmouth alums who are on opposite ends of the pornography spectrum.

Vivid Entertainment [Warning:NSFW], which is the world's largest pornography distributor and is often referred to as the Microsoft of the porn industry, has spearheaded the movement toward increasing pornography's social acceptability. With Asher at its helm, the company has required male porn stars to wear condoms, alleviating actors' concern over AIDS. It also signed the elite in female adult talent to exclusive contracts, reviving those of the Hollywood studio system, and started selling their professionally-staged films in mainstream retail outlets like Virgin Megastore and Tower Records.

"We try to get it out there so it's not just porn; it's part of a fun lifestyle. It's a fun, sexy, silly thing," Asher said. "Hopefully we've had some impact on making people more comfortable with it."

Versus:

"I'm sure Bill Asher would think there's nothing wrong with his business or values," Peters said. "In my opinion he belongs in jail. I honestly believe he does."

As the president of Morality in Media [VSFW], a national, interfaith, not-for-profit organization, Peters pushes for the enforcement of obscenity laws and for upholding standards of decency in the media.

"My goal is to reverse the flood tide of commercialized obscenity and push it as far as possible back into the gutter where it belongs," Peters said.

Which Boston-area university nabbed the best commencement speaker?

• Boston University: CBS head honcho (and Howard Stern nemesis) Leslie Moonves
• Boston College: Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, a/k/a George Bush's BFF / bathroom supervisor
• Tufts University: Cycling superhero Lance Armstrong
• Berklee College of Music: Melissa Etheridge!
• Harvard University: Online News Hour host Jim Lehrer
• Simmons College: The woman who made vaginas famous --- Eve Ensler 
• MIT: Ben Bernanke, a/k/a Alan Greenspan's successor
• UMass Boston: Barack Obama, a/k/a the Democratic Party's only hope
• Brandeis University: His Royal Highness El Hassan bin Talal, Jordan's apparently techno-savvy prince
• Northeastern University: General Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt
• Lesley University: Michael and Katherine Dukakis. Aw, how cute.

Around the country, some colleges scored coups, while others' choices seem puzzling. Here's a round-up of some big names (thanks in part to the Chronicle of Higher Education's commencement-speaker database):

George W. Bush will offer some Katrina mea culpas by speaking at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College at Perkinston; he'll also be at Oklahoma State University, the United States Merchant Marine Academy, and the United States Military Academy. His dad will address Tulane graduates (more Katrina guilt?). Funny lady Laura Bush is scheduled to speak at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island.

Hillary's doing the politically savvy home-state thing at Buffalo State College, Long Island University, and Genesee Community College, while Bill was chosen by Princeton students to speak at "Class Day."

Other presidential hopefuls who will be busy in May and June: Mark Warner, who will speak at not one but three graduation ceremonies, John McCain (Liberty University and Ohio State U. at Columbus), Wesley Clark (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute), John Kerry (Kenyon), Joe Biden (Widener U.), and George Allen (James Madison U.).

(Did Evan Bayh, Mitt Romney**, Rudy Giuliani, and Bill Frist not get any invites?)

Joe Torre will scowl at Rider University graduates in New Jersey, but don't worry, Shonda Schilling will represent the Sox at Merrimack College in North Andover. 

UPenn students aren't thrilled with their school's selection: Jodie Foster. (Other red carpet commencement speakers include Spike Lee at Kean U. in Jersey, and Billy Joel, who will give the graduation speech at Syracuse.)

(Note: Dr. Stephen Spielberg, who's speaking at New Hampshire's Lebanon College, is not same guy who directed Jaws. Nor is John Stewart, commencement speaker at Michigan's Lake Superior State University, host of the Daily Show.)

Some schools get stuck with real duds --- we feel sorry for York College seniors, who have to listen to Kenneth Starr, and Mississippi State University graduates, who'll hear from Trent Lott.

The luckiest grads of all? We think they're at Knox College in Illinois, where Stephen Colbert will speak on June 3 --- with gravitas, with dignity, with balls.

**Turns out Mitt's speaking at Coe College, located in guess what state --- Iowa.

Condoleeza Rice will speak at BC's commencement on May 22.

Also:

On this "Day Without Immigrants," the Heights editorial staff encouraged BC students to boycott class in an effort to show solidarity with immigrants --- because "missing a day of class is not going to cost anyone a job or gravely hurt anyone's family."

So did the Crimson.

The Crimson's magazine, FM, chose the 15 hottest Harvard freshmen (rising sophomores). Check them out.

Here are six interesting and vastly different takes, from six Harvard Crimson editors, on the Opal Mehta brouhaha. They address everything from envy, to xenophobia, to the perils of pressure at Ivy League universities, to plagarizing professors who get slaps on the wrist.

In their fight against global warming, MassPIRG's student chapters just brought the ultimate competitor into their corner --- MTV. For one moment, MTV execs wrestled themselves away from weighty concerns such as Date My Mom, Parental Control, and Yo Momma, to launch the "Break the Addiction" campaign on their Web site last Sunday. With features such as a daily carbon calculator, and "Are You a Global Warming Superstar?" mixed in with less-dumbed-down commentary and interviews from Grist.org (a great site for all things environmental), it might just get a few more people on board.